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Dwayne Gretzky

Dwayne Gretzky is everyone’s favourite supergroup loosely named after a hockey legend.

Known for their boundless energy on stage, virtuosic musicianship, and true-to-artist cover repertoire of over 400 of the best songs ever written, Dwayne Gretzky has achieved notoriety in their hometown of Toronto, Ontario Canada. From their humble beginnings with a weekly sold-out residency at the historic Dakota Tavern, to headlining their own annual New Years Eve show (which has ballooned to a consistently-sold-out 1,400 attendees), to shouldering the official after-party slot of Ontario’s largest new music festival (WayHome), Dwayne Gretzky is a band whose success can be traced to their DIY approach and their nose-to-the-fretboard ethos.

The core of the band centres around Toronto’s top musicians, and the A+ list line-up and DG alumnists has include touring members from July Talk, Born Ruffians, Our Lady Peace, Justin Bieber, Danko Jones, Lindi Ortega, Brave Shores, and others playing all of your dad’s favourite songs.

As of February 2017, Dwayne Gretzky has played an unprecedented 90-straight sold-out public shows in the Greater-Toronto-Area. Between their time spent capturing the ears, hearts, and dancing shoes of a fervent fanbase, the band is regularly hired by the world’s largest brands to add a whole new dimension to their parties, launches, and conferences. To date, notable clients include TD Bank, Microsoft, Live Nation, Mill Street, Molson, Labatt, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, General Motors, Harley Davidson, Rolling Rock, Crown Royal, Alexander Keith’s, Movember, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, and The Toronto International Film Festival.

While it’s not uncommon for a Dwayne Gretzky show to span genres and artists as diverse as Bruce Springsteen, Michael Jackson, David Bowie and Alanis Morissette, the band has achieved even more local fame from their themed all-night sets. An annual all-90s show (Big Shiny Dwayne) sees the band learn 40 new songs just for the occasion. When Fleetwood Mac sold out Toronto’s 20,000-seat Air Canada Centre, Dwayne Gretzky learned Rumours back-to-front and performed it at their own sold-out show just a few blocks away. An annual record-breaking residency at the Horseshoe Tavern sees nights devoted entirely to themes such as British Invasion, Breakup Songs, and Bowie. And that’s just the letter B.

While their explosion in fanbase growth has been entirely organic, their musical development has been entirely deliberate, and as both trends converge, it’s safe to say that Dwayne Gretzky will keep you and all your friends, Dancing in the Dark.